Chapter 26 Chapter Twenty-four

The so-called food is only fried rice and beans, which can be eaten directly or cooked into porridge.Because both of them needed hot water to heal their illnesses, and there was only one charcoal brazier, the three of them ate casually for breakfast. It was getting late now, and the treatment of the two of them had ended, so Li Qichen cooked a bowl of porridge and simmered it slowly.Yan Wei rested wearily on the bear mat. Gongzi Cong took out a lacquer box, opened it, and found a few "pounding treasures" wrapped in lotus leaves.Nadaozhen is made of animal tenderloin, the fascia is removed, it is beaten repeatedly until it is crispy, and it is baked until there is no fat. It is dry and soft, easy to carry, and can not rot for three to five days even in midsummer.

Gongzi Cong put the lotus leaves beside the charcoal fire, and after a while, the fragrance of grain and meat filled the whole tomb, which made people's index fingers twitch. Yan Wei smiled and said, "There are still such delicious foods." Gongzi Cong also looked at her and smiled: "There is no preparation in advance, there is only this little, it is only enough for this meal." Li Qichen said: "It's enough to be able to eat this meal." As he spoke, he shared meals with everyone.Although he was in refuge, he did not lack etiquette. He used the lacquer box to make a few cases, placed it in front of Gongzi Cong, served porridge and a lotus leaf, and then distributed it to Yan Wei, and finally to himself. .

The porridge was boiling hot, and Yan Wei couldn't eat it, so she just picked up a small piece of porridge with her fingers, put it in her mouth, tasted it carefully, and asked, "What's the matter with those pigeons?" Li Qichen had wanted to ask a long time ago, but the atmosphere was weird at the time, and he was afraid that there would be some taboos, so he always felt that it was not easy to ask. Now that Yan Wei asked, he couldn't help but listen attentively. Young Master Cong said slowly: "This is the last trick. I have planned it long ago. I don't know if it is right now... When those pigeons are usually released to pass the news, I will fly on the bamboo tube at the pigeon's feet. Attach a pure white silk for the other party to write on. Normally, there is a silk with words in the bamboo tube, indicating the route to get here, saying that there is a treasure here. In an emergency, let them fly out together, and everyone will collect them. Seeing this piece of silk, the people who are greedy for money will definitely come. If they can enter the valley, the way out of the valley can fall on them. And if there are more people and chaos, maybe we will have an extra chance... "

Yan Wei said anxiously: "These people don't know the way, and they don't know that there is miasma, isn't it harming them?" Gongzi Cong said: "The villagers around here naturally know that there is miasma here, otherwise they would not have been invaded by outsiders for more than 20 years. As for the road, there are many people and many ways, maybe they can find it. I don't know. What's more What's more, money touches people's hearts, and for the treasure, many people will do anything... Even if they die because of this, it is their own fault, if they are not greedy for unreasonable money, if they don't come here, there will be no danger."

Hearing this, Li Qichen felt a little bit chilled. After all, it was for his own self-interest to coax so many people into this dangerous place, and they might lose their lives at any time. Even if it is the reward of greed for money, it is too cruel. Gongzi Cong looked at the expression on Li Qichen's face, guessed what he was thinking, and said with a smile: "I'm not lying, what I can reward them here is not a treasure? I'm afraid it's richer than any treasure in the world, as long as I can get out and everything here is theirs." Yan Wei pursed her lips and said, "Anyway, this method is not upright..."

Gongzi Cong explained: "This is my last move. If they really want to put me to death, I can only use this trick to protect myself, release the pigeons, and find a way to escape to any such mechanism to hide. They couldn't find me and withdrew, waiting for people from outside to come in, so I could go out with them... Other than that, I have no other way to escape with my life. It's not that I'm cruel, but that's all I can do..." Li Qichen nodded slowly, although he didn't speak, he obviously agreed with Gongzi Cong's approach.A person, in such a situation, without even a close and reliable person by his side, facing dozens of well-trained soldiers, always guarding against someone's conspiracy... No self-protection strategy can be overstated .

But those who are attracted by the treasure are probably money-grubbing desperadoes. If they can take risks for money, they may also kill people because of money. At that time, dealing with these people may not be easier than dealing with those soldiers.Even though Gongzi Cong has an exquisite mind and careful thinking, he has suffered from being imprisoned in the valley all year round.In addition, he is used to rich clothes and fine food, and only knows that money can move people's hearts, but he doesn't understand how attractive money is to slaves and common people. Thinking of this, Li Qichen couldn't help frowning, thinking that he and Tong Shuai were not like this. At that time, they left so much gold for Yan Wei, and only wanted to repay her, but they didn't expect to cause trouble...

Another ninth day. Waking up early in the morning, Li Qichen turned on the fire and cooked everyone's breakfast.There was only the last handful of rice left, rolling in the water, just enough to make three bowls of gruel. Living in the cave for nine days was like being in a prison, because of the previous disaster in prison, Li Qichen didn't feel anything.But the tempers of Gongzi Cong and Yan Wei are improving day by day.Gongzi Cong walked up and down restlessly, like a caged animal.Yan Wei's brows were deeply furrowed, she rested her chin in a sullen mood. Because Gongzi Cong's condition is not very good, some red pimples appeared along the meridians on his body, Yan Wei said that this was caused by moisture, and he could take a little care after he went out.But Li Qichen had been with her for a long time, and judging from her expression and tone, he knew that she was not completely sure.Gongzi Cong's mind was quick, and he had already seen it, but he didn't say anything, but was secretly anxious.

Gongzi Cong suddenly said: "When you go out, turn the light at the door inward, and the mechanism will open automatically. After you go out, step on the tree hole, and the mechanism will be closed. This pottery pipe leads to a dead tree outside. , one person tall, easy to identify, if the mechanism cannot be opened or you need to communicate with me, just climb on the dead tree and talk to the pottery pipe, and I can hear you clearly." Hearing what he said, Li Qichen wished he could go out to investigate right away, so he got up and straightened his clothes, and said, "Please look at the fire, my lord, I'll come as soon as I go."

Li Qichen came out of the cave, but seeing the bright sun outside, his spirits lifted. Li Qichen rushed to the side of the tall building where the servants lived, lay down in the grass and watched quietly for a while, but there was no movement.I went to the nearby kitchen stove to touch it, the fire was out, the ashes were cold, and even the stove ash was slightly dampened and hardened.Climbing up the stairs, I saw that the second floor was empty, without any softness, and the room was messy. People had been gone for a long time.When they came to the building where Gongzi Cong lived, it was also covered with wet ashes from the cold stove, and the horses in the stables were also gone, presumably they all rode away.

Li Qichen didn't delay, and immediately turned back to the entrance of the cave, only to see Gongzi Cong and Yan Wei already standing at the entrance of the cave impatiently holding the things they used. Seeing him approaching from a distance, Gongzi Cong asked, "How? Have they left?" Li Qichen waved his hand and replied, "Everyone is gone! We can go back!" Entering the main hall, I didn't feel too much strange. Although the valuables had been looted, the three of them had expected this and were not surprised. Entering Gongzi Cong's side room, he saw that all the beds, desks, cabinets, and shelves were dismantled into pieces, and the floor was in a mess, and all the things in the hidden compartment were looted to nothing.Young Master Cong was stunned for a while, then smiled and said: "Forget it! If you lose money and avoid disaster, let them go!" Yan Wei said, "This is too much! Not even a piece of bedding." Li Qichen looked at the ground, and sure enough, only the worthless mat was left, and nothing else was left. Gongzi Cong said: "It's okay, let's go down to the kitchen and have a look, and get something to eat." Li Qichen secretly thought, with their method of looting, even if they would take away all the better food, it was hard to say what would be left. As soon as he got downstairs, Gongzi Cong was shocked: "Where is my dog?! There are also peacocks and cranes, why are they gone?!" Li Qichen was also surprised, he came in a hurry just now and didn't pay attention to these.I only saw that the horses in the stables were no longer there. They must have taken them out to pull carts and ride them.Rabbits, chickens, and deer were missing, which they must have killed and eaten.But those dogs are good hunting dogs, peacocks and other birds are just for entertainment, so they shouldn't be so greedy, kill them all, right?But the fact in front of him is that the cages that previously housed hundreds of animals are wide open and empty. Yan Wei walked over and took a closer look, and said, "There is no blood in this cage, so it may not have been slaughtered, it must be because they were afraid that they would starve to death when they left, so they were released." Li Qichen thought that although what Yan Wei said was reasonable, seeing how these people behaved, he might not have such a kind heart. Gongzi Cong's face softened a little, and he turned and went into the kitchen to check. The kitchen has two entrances, the outer room is the stove, and the inner room is used for storage behind the stove, which is kept dry by the heat from the stove, which is convenient for food storage. Entering the inner room, the three of them were shocked again, the inside was empty, not to mention a grain of rice, a jar of oil, not even a single piece of firewood or charcoal!Young Master Cong said dejectedly: "Their move is really amazing, it's going to put us to death..." Li Qichen comforted: "There is still charcoal in the crypt over there, we can use it. The trees are verdant here, and there is plenty of firewood, but it takes some effort. There are fish in the lake, and you can eat them if you have a hand. You won't starve to death if you have feet, you don't have to worry." Young Master Cong nodded feebly, and said, "There is still food stored in the tree house over there, let's get it first..." The three of them walked to the lake, and they smelled a foul smell from a distance, which made people sick.When I got closer, I saw many things floating up and down by the lake, and it was difficult to distinguish them for a while. Gongzi Cong suddenly shouted: "Qixiang! Lifeng! Jijiu!" Following Gongzi Cong's gaze, there were several corpses of fine horses floating in the water not far from the lake. Under the moistening of the lake water, it still exudes brilliance. If you take a closer look, you can see the corpses of countless animals, ranging from hounds, sika deer, and musk deer, to small rabbits, peacocks, and cranes, floating on the lake, making the water filthy and smelly. There were even bags of beans and wheat floating in the lake, chopped firewood branches, whole urns of dried vegetables... mixed with corpses, floating in the muddy water, they had begun to rot. Yan Wei watched and couldn't help but want to vomit.Li Qichen walked over and patted her on the back lightly.Yan Wei turned around, buried her face in Li Qichen's chest, grabbed the hem of his chest with both hands, gently kept a little distance, did not raise her head, her shoulders twitched, she didn't know if she was crying or retching. Gongzi Cong ran along the lake, calling the names of the animals constantly: "Hunter! Jiafu! Xueyue! Niwa! Qiushan..." Running from east to west, the lake water soaked his right shoe and the hem of his clothes. , and ran from west to east, and the lake water soaked his left shoe and the hem of his clothes again... The shoe was gone, his hair was scattered, and he was still running, as if calling for a soul.There were tears pouring down, sprinkled on the fine white sand and pebbles by the lake, and dried quickly without leaving a trace. Although the surrounding area is sunny, it feels extremely cold.